I think it's a good concept in principle, but (as you point out) it needs to be applied correctly and in a way that's viable; clearly yours is not.
The system my organisation uses works really well and while there's detractors, I think (I know) it's making a real difference to how people drive and it's showing in reduced accidents/incidents.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea and I want it to be set up correctly. The level of safety it awards our riders if something goes wrong is immeasurable.
Telemetry on vehicles is a must for any company for even just insurance purposes and those detractors will most likely be people who get up to no good in their cars.
We’ve fired a rider for wasting company time because we tracked him sitting at his mum and dad’s place for a sizeable chunk of the day he was claiming he was working. This caused a major backlog of mail not being delivered.
We’ve also used it against couriers who were found to have been dumping parcels instead of delivering them.
I’m 100% for vehicle telemetry. I just wish the company would do research before choosing an ineffective brand.
I reckon a lot of people have been caught out and fired because telematics and justifiably so I think; there's implications for doing the wrong thing usually.
As for the research done prior to choosing a system...I agree, although it's difficult to see past the sales pitch sometimes, one can only hope it's the right thing. Good luck.